The obscure, untold stories from gay history inspire Seth Eisen, whose "Homo File" opens Friday at CounterPulse. In the case of Sam Steward, Eisen's latest subject, it's an epic saga about a larger-than-life character - lover of Rudolph Valentino, protege of Gertrude Stein, a university professor who became the official tattoo artist for the Hell's Angels, a voracious sexual dynamo, researcher for Alfred Kinsey and writer of erotica under the nom de plume Phil Andros.

Q:What was it that intrigued you about Steward's story?

A: One of the things I'm interested in is the idea of Sam as a bridge between the younger and older generations. This is a piece that can appeal to both a younger generation that's into queer culture and an older generation that still finds the word "queer" unappealing because it was used as a slur before the gay liberation.

As a young college professor - Sam had his Ph.D. at 22 - he made a choice, knowing he would be fired if it was known he was a homosexual. So he chose to hide ... sort of. But throughout his life, he kept detailed records of all of his sexual experiences - a record of what it was like to be an underground gay man in that repressive period when you might be found out, and it would be published in the newspaper, and that was the end of your life.

Many people committed suicide. We kind of forget about that time - it's often whitewashed. People think that was then and now everything is different. But I think it's important to remember that people like Sam really had to struggle and work out for themselves as humans how to operate while being persecuted. Yet even though there was repression, he still managed to have a sexual life and be quite proud of it.

Q:How do you gather the strands of a life that has so many interesting aspects in one piece?

A: This is the one thing I really related to. I've always been a multi-disciplinary artist and blended the visual and performing arts, dance and circus. Steward was a multifaceted, talented person, so I thought it was perfect, to bridge my own multidisciplinary approach with his.

In the show, an artist will draw Sam's tattoos, which will appear on the walls or on people's bodies. You'll see them drawn in the moment as a projection. Puppetry is also something I'm interested in. We work with the young Sam in shadow puppetry, and then also the fragile, aged Sam- near death and living in his Berkeley bungalow - who has all these mementos and stories to tell.

Q:What do you hope that people will take away from this show?

A: I hope they'll get a sense of his bravery and his humanity. That he's not just another gay man who did some edgy things, but he did them in times when he risked his life, risked prison time and being ostracized from society. Hopefully, what people will take away is the message of living life more as themselves, closer to their own truth, because he was a truth seeker, a person who asked questions.